Some very common verbs (like aller, which means to go) don’t follow typical patterns.
| aller to go |
|
|---|---|
| je I |
vais go |
| tu you (informal) |
vas go |
| il / elle he / she |
va goes |
Le, la, and l’ all mean the. If the noun starts with a vowel or the silent h, use l’ instead of le or la.
| Masculine | Feminine |
|---|---|
| l’homme le train l’avion |
la femme la voiture l’orange |
We've already seen that French verbs change depending on the person (for example, je suis, tu es, etc.). If a verb begins with a vowel, be sure to change je to j’. We see this happen with j’ai, which means I have.
J'ai un passeport.
I have a passport.
| avoir to have |
|
|---|---|
| je I |
ai have |
| tu you (informal) |
as have |
| il / elle he / she |
a has |
Careful with a and à! When it doesn’t have an accent, a means has, whereas à means in or at.
In French, g is pronounced differently if it’s followed by e or n.